Lower Saxony & Bremen
Victims of abuse report to the Evangelical Church
2/15/2022 7:49 am
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50 years ago, a philosophy course at a school in Bremen was said to have been abused. The alleged perpetrator: a pastor. So far the church has known of one person affected, but it seems there are more.
Bremen (dpa / lni) – Those affected report to the Bremen Evangelical Church that a pastor is said to have committed sexualized violence in the 1970s. That said the deputy head of the church office, Jutta Schmidt, of the German Press Agency. The alleged perpetrator is a former Bremen cathedral preacher who died in 1992. So far, only the case of a boy who was abused by the clergyman when he was running a philosophy workshop at a high school in the Hanseatic city about 50 years ago was known.
“We assume that there are other victims,” said Schmidt, who is the BEK’s contact for questions about sexualized violence. The “Bild” newspaper reported last week on a possible other person affected from the environment of that philosophy AG.
After this and other articles in the Bremen press, eyewitnesses and other people allegedly affected reported, said Schmidt. All were offered talks. These have not all been listed, so no information is given on the number of other people who may be affected.
“The Bremen Evangelical Church sees its responsibility here to provide clarity and clarification wherever possible, even if suspected cases date back a long time,” said the church leadership.
The case of a former student who contacted the BEK in 2010 is well known. The man, who is now over 60, is being looked after, and the case has also been worked up with the cathedral community, said Schmidt.
Last week, an independent commission of the Confederation of Protestant Churches in Lower Saxony discussed financial recognition for the man. Details were not given. For a long time, such benefits can be paid in cases of suffering when a legal clarification is no longer possible. In 2020, the small BEK joined the commission of the neighboring churches, which was led by a judge.
The Bremen Church also suggested that the case of the cathedral preacher be investigated in the forum study, Schmidt said. In this project, independent scientists are researching sexualized violence and other forms of abuse in the Protestant church and diaconia. Results should be available by the end of 2023.
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